Chapter 4 - The Unwelcome Knock
The second knock was harder, deliberate, and entirely devoid of hesitation. It reverberated through the quiet living room, freezing David in his tracks with the stranger’s phone still gripped tightly in his palm. Sarah instinctively pulled back, her hand flying to her mouth, her eyes darting toward the hallway leading to the front entrance. Marcus stood paralyzed against the leather sofa, the blood rushing in his ears, every teenage impulse toward rebellion completely evaporated.
"Nobody move," David commanded in a harsh, barely audible tone. He tossed the alien phone onto the couch cushions, his eyes locking onto the front door. Without a sound, he moved toward the hallway closet, his heavy footsteps muffled by the carpet.
Sarah grabbed Marcus by the arm, pulling him back toward the safety of the kitchen area. "Stay behind me," she whispered fiercely, her maternal instincts overriding her fear.
David reappeared from the hallway holding a heavy, blunt metal flashlight, his muscles tensed for whatever was waiting on the other side of the threshold. He approached the wooden door cautiously, glancing through the small peephole. The porch light outside illuminated an empty welcome mat, but the edges of a large, dark figure were visible just outside the range of the fisheye lens.
"Who's there?" David called out, his voice steady, projecting authority despite the spike of adrenaline in his chest.
There was no verbal response from the porch. Instead, the handle of the front door slowly began to turn, clicking softly as the latch mechanism tested the lock. David lunged forward, throwing his weight against the wood just as the door pushed inward with resistance. He slammed it shut, locked the deadbolt with a sharp metallic snap, and backed away.
"They've got a key card or a bypass," David muttered, his eyes darting to the living room window. "Marcus, get your mother into the back hallway right now. We're leaving through the utility exit."
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Marcus didn't argue. He grabbed his mother’s hand, his heart pounding against his ribs like a trapped bird. But before they could take a single step toward the back of the house, the sound of glass shattering echoed from the kitchen window, followed by the heavy thud of someone climbing inside.
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